A city of: mansions, luxury condominiums and mangroves, with a renowned nightlife and beaches. Home of: crypto kids, Djs, and narcos — related to icons such as: Pitbull, Los Estefan and Griselda Blanco. The city with the most Art Deco buildings in the world; the upcoming “Manhattan of the south”; and where the art world gathers every winter to celebrate itself — Miami has a lot to offer.

Miami is known for its beaches, night life, mansions plus luxury condominiums, Art Deco buildings and La Calle 8. Its jungly but suburban, contemporary yet underdeveloped, third world and first world at the same time. Within the art world it plays a huge role in the street art and design spheres; and outside of it, it’s important in the music, drug trafficking and crypto worlds. Many iconic singers, artist, actors, narcos and businessmen have emerged from this city. Think of Pitbull, Gloria Estefan, Daniel Arsham, Jen Stark, the rock, Eva Mendez, Tony Montana, Griselda Blanco, David Tepper or Jorge Perez. There’s a lot to check out but if you only have a limited amount of time I would make sure to visit 1 museum, eat a sandwiche cubano in Calle 8, drink a margarita in Ocean Drive, relax in a beach, walk around Brickell, dance salsa or techno, see the urban art of Wynwood, and take a picture in front of an art deco lifeguard tower and/or the Miami river walk. If you have more time you should try to go to a mansion, cruise up and down the Biscayne Bay, shop around the Design District or Aventura Mall, rent a Lamborghini and explore the Everglades.

Here are some recommendations of places to visit. Miami has 1 unesco site really close it, the Everglades but the art deco district of south beach is trying to get on the list. Miami has 14 ‘Michelin restaurants’ so try to make a reservation in one of them. My top 5 museums are: The Vizcaya Mansion for gilded-age art and furniture; the History Miami Museum for historical artifacts; the Wolfsonian Museum for art deco and modern art; Wynwood Walls/Graffiti/Hip-Hop Museum (3 small museums under one block) for street art; and The Perez Art Museum for contemporary art. My favorite art galleries are: Eden Gallery, ArtPlug, David Castillo, Oliver Cole Gallery and Coral Contemporary Art. For luxury shopping go to the Design District or the Shops at Merrick Park Mall; for Cuban goods go to La Calle 8; for the typical brands go to Lincoln Road or the Ventura Mall; and for cheaper goods the Bayside Marketplace. Also take a chance to walk around Wynwood, the art district of Miami with a wide range of shops and prices. Some venues to check out are: Arsht Center for concerts, Guantanamera for live salsa music, LIV for electronic music and the CMX Cinemas for movies.

Here are 8 routs to explore Miami: